Freedom on My Mind (1994)

Freedom on My Mind is a 1994 feature documentary film that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, won that year's Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. It is the first film to chronicle, in depth, the story of Freedom Summer. It was produced and directed by Connie Field and Marilyn Mulford.

The film vividly tells the complex and compelling history of the Mississippi voter registration struggles of 1961 to 1964: the interracial nature of the campaign, the tensions and conflicts, the fears and hopes. It is the story of youthful idealism and shared vision, of a generation who believed in and fought for the principles of democracy. Participants interviewed include Robert Parris Moses, Victoria Gray Adams, Endesha Ida Mae Holland, and Freedom Summer volunteers Marshall Ganz, Heather Booth, and Pam Allen.

Synopsis

In 1961, Mississippi was a virtual South African enclave within the United States. Everything was segregated. There were virtually no black voters. Bob Moses entered the state and the Mississippi Voter Registration Project began. The first black farmer who attempted to register was fatally shot by a Mississippi State Representative. But four years later, the registration was open. By 1990, Mississippi had more elected black officials than any other state in the country. As the New York Times said in their review of the film, "a handful of young people, black and white, believed they could change history. And did."